Theories about The Shining

The Holocaust

There is a crazy theory that The Shining is actually about the Holocaust. I have learned about the theory and its reasons and I was completely shocked and my mind was blown. Here is why some people think The Shining is about the Holocaust.

The number 'forty-two' can sometimes represent the Holocaust. It pops up in the movie multiple times:

• • They say they switched Stephen King’s room number 217 to 237 because the real Overlook didn’t want to scare guests since they have a room 217 and not a room 237, but some think Stanley Kubrick changed it because of the fact that 2x3x7= 42.

  • When Danny is looking in the mirror at the beginning his shirt has the number forty-two on it

  • When Wendy and Danny are watching television they are watching "Summer of 42"

  • When they get a shot at the Overlook at the beginning there are 42 cars in the parking lot

  • The number 42 also pops up in the license plate of the rental car Dick Hallorann uses to get back up to the Overlook

The type of typewriter Jack uses is an Adler, which means eagle in German, which represents the Nazis.

In one particular scene, guests at the Overlook blend from one scene into the next, and they fade into a pile of suitcases.

Native Americans

Some people think The Shining is about Native Americans. This one I couldn’t believe when I heard about it, so I had to learn why. These are some of the reasons that I found:

People think that the blood from the elevator was the Native American's blood because when they’re getting a tour of the Overlook he mentions it was built on an "Indian burial ground." Later on, Ullman says the Overlook was "a jet-set before people knew what a jet-set was." People think this means that they stole their land so their blood comes out of the elevator.

When they’re in the food pantry with Dick Hallorann there are food cans with Native American designs.

Multiple times the colors red, white and blue pop up and that represents the flag of America which is negative for Native Americans because it used to be their land until it was stolen.

There is a big Native American picture above the fireplace, where Jack repeatedly threw a tennis ball at it. One of the figures in the paintings is wearing the same shade of blue as the Grady daughter’s dresses.

When Wendy sees Dick Hallorann dead on the ground the body is on a native floor design.

Apollo 11

Jay Weidner thinks that The Shining is about Apollo 11. I didn’t think he could have any evidence to back that up, but it turns out he did, and it was very interesting. Here are some of his reasons.

Jay Weidner thinks NASA was so desperate to beat Russia to the moon so they called Stanley Kubrick to fake the moon landing

Danny is wearing an Apollo 11 rocket on his sweater.

The distance between the moon and the Earth is 237,000 miles.

The page that Jack leaves behind that starts the sentence with ‘all’, Jay Weidner sees A11, short for Apollo 11.

People think where Jack talks about his responsibilities to Wendy it’s actually Stanley Kubrick is confessing.

Dick Hallorann comes from Florida, where the Apollo 11 rocket was launched.

Ullman has an eagle on his windowsill. A nickname for Apollo 11 is The Eagle.

My Theory

I have shared some interesting theories and I’m partly influenced by them and partly by watching the movie. I love the creativity of the movie and the theory that it’s about Native Americans, but I don’t think that’s what the movie is about. I think that at some points Stanley Kubrick could have referenced this, though. I think Stanley Kubrick was trying to reference the Holocaust, too, and I think the Holocaust makes the most sense. I think that, while these theories are interesting and I wouldn't put it past him to include these details in hopes of people looking into them, we shouldn't Overlook the broader themes and concepts that he touches on.

About the main story in the movie, I have some theories. I think Jack Torrance and Delbert Grady are one and the same. I think he is the same as all of the caretakers. I think this because Jack states, “It’s as though I’ve been here before.” and that’s kind of creepy. Also, Grady tells him in the bathroom, “You’re the caretaker. You’ve always been the caretaker.” but if Grady was the caretaker, how could Jack also be the caretaker if they weren’t the same person? I think that the picture at the end gives it all away. The year said 1921. Jack wasn’t there in 1921. But he’s in the picture, so he was, but maybe not as Jack. Lloyd the bartender, when told Jack likes to know who’s buying his drinks, responds, “That doesn’t matter, Mr. Torrance, at least not at this point.” That response has always stumped me. Perhaps he means someone who he used to be in another life had bought him drinks, and now he’s having them. Also, I think two things, both based on the fact that every time Jack speaks to a ghost there’s a mirror in the room. The first thing is he’s just talking to his reflection, and the ghosts are him. I have more evidence of this. Jack said he’d give his soul for something to drink, then Lloyd appeared. Maybe Lloyd now has his soul. In other words, they’re the same. The second thing is that maybe the mirror is reflecting the events that went on in the past causing the caretakers to repeat killing their families. Those are my theories on the one and only The Shining.

"The screen is a magic medium. It has such power that it can retain interest as it conveys emotions and moods that no other art form can hope to tackle."

-Stanley Kubrick